Former Bayern Munich midfielder Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg has been arguably Southampton’s top performer in the Premier League this season.
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg is one of the few Southampton players who has been consistently impressive in a frustrating season.
And new manager Ralph Hasenhuttl has clearly been won over by the Danish international, while admitting to the Daily Echo that he is attracting plenty of interest from clubs outside of St Mary’s.
Hojbjerg famously rose through the ranks at German giants Bayern Munich and was highly-regarded by Pep Guardiola before making the move to Southampton in 2016 for a fee of £12.8 million, as reported by the BBC.
After a slow start to life in England, the 23-year-old has gone from strength to strength this season, scoring three Premier League goals while impressing with his intelligent distribution and athleticism in the centre of the park.
And Hasenhuttl clearly has big plans for Hojbjerg – if the Southampton manager can keep him, that is.
“I see him as the captain for the future,” said the former RB Leipzig boss. “He is one of the guys who you can build a team around. He is professional, very hard working and is one of our key players.
“I know that a lot of good and famous clubs in Europe have him on their list. We know that we are not alone in the Premier League, the big clubs are hunting for the good players.”
Southampton are desperate to shed their reputation as a ‘selling club’, having seen the likes of Virgil Van Dijk, Luke Shaw, Adam Lallana, Nathaniel Clyne, Callum Chambers and co leave in recent seasons.
And keeping Hojbjerg out of the clutches of some of Europe’s biggest clubs would certainly be a statement.
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